Daily Archives: June 20, 2018

Our country was founded on the principle of religious freedom. The U.S. Supreme Court must uphold fundamental American values by striking down the unconstitutional Muslim ban; no one should fear because of how they pray, writes Julia A. Shearson.

Share this:

Like this:

Donald Trump needs to try harder if he wants to scare Rafael Castillo. On May 2, Rafael finished his work cutting lemons in a field in Apatazingán, Michoacán. He passed by his parents’ place then headed home. That’s when he received the call: “They have just killed your brothers.” Gunmen had shot two of his siblings, right in front of his parents, just 10 minutes after Rafael had left them. They buried the bodies that same afternoon. When he went home that night, armed men in SUVs were waiting for him outside his house. A friend of his wife’s bought them plane tickets to Tijuana. They arrived the next day.

Like this:

The Republican Party has become the party of Trump, “corrupt, indecent and immoral.” And that Ronald Reagan would have been ashamed of McConnell and Paul Ryan (debatable), and that they had disgraced the party of Lincoln (nevermind that it hasn’t been that in well over a century). Much of this Schmidt has said before. What is new, however, is that he’s now aligning himself with the Democratic Party, saying: “This Independent voter will be aligned with the only party left in America that stands for what is right and decent and remains fidelitous to our Republic, objective truth, the rule of law and our Allies. That party is the Democratic Party.”

Republican strategist Steve Schmidt, one of the GOP’s loudest critics of President Trump, renounced the party early Wednesday and announced that he will begin voting for Democrats.

Schmidt slammed Trump in a Twitter thread, saying he was leaving the party that once ended slavery.

29 years and nine months ago I registered to vote and became a member of The Republican Party which was founded in 1854 to oppose slavery and stand for the dignity of human life. Today I renounce my membership in the Republican Party. It is fully the party of Trump.

Share this:

Like this:

Just 41% of Americans say they are very or somewhat confident that Trump will handle matters related to the special counsel investigation appropriately. Republicans and Democrats offer starkly different assessments.

Like this:

LatinaLista — President Donald Trump signed today, under duress, an executive order to stop separating immigrant families. However, this order does not address reunifying families.

The ongoing trauma that detained children are being subjected to needs to end and, as a community, the nation must continue the pressure on Congress, the DOJ and the Oval Office to ensure these children have a voice — a loud voice — until they are in the arms of their parents.

Photo: Department of Homeland Security Secretary Kirstjen Nielsen and Vice President Mike Pence flank President Trump as he signs the Executive Order.

THE WHITE HOUSE

Office of the Press Secretary

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

June 20, 2018

EXECUTIVE ORDER

– – – – – – –

AFFORDING CONGRESS AN OPPORTUNITY TO ADDRESS FAMILY SEPARATION

By the authority vested in me as President by the Constitution and the laws of the United States of America, including the Immigration and Nationality Act (INA), 8 U.S.C. 1101 et seq., it is hereby ordered as follows:

Section 1. Policy. It is the policy of this Administration to rigorously enforce our immigration laws. Under our laws, the only legal way for an alien to enter this country is at a designated port of entry at an appropriate time. When an alien enters or attempts to enter the country anywhere else, that alien has committed at least the crime of improper entry and is subject to a fine or imprisonment under section 1325(a) of title 8, United States Code. This Administration will initiate proceedings to enforce this and other criminal provisions of the INA until and unless Congress directs otherwise. It is also the policy of this Administration to maintain family unity, including by detaining alien families together where appropriate and consistent with law and available resources. It is unfortunate that Congress’s failure to act and court orders have put the Administration in the position of separating alien families to effectively enforce the law.

Sec. 2. Definitions. For purposes of this order, the following definitions apply:

(a) “Alien family” means

(i) any person not a citizen or national of the United States who has not been admitted into, or is not authorized to enter or remain in, the United States, who entered this country with an alien child or alien children at or between designated ports of entry and who was detained; and

(ii) that person’s alien child or alien children.

(b) “Alien child” means any person not a citizen or national of the United States who

(i) has not been admitted into, or is not authorized to enter or remain in, the United States;

(ii) is under the age of 18; and

(iii) has a legal parent-child relationship to an alien who entered the United States with the alien child at or between designated ports of entry and who was detained.

Sec. 3. Temporary Detention Policy for Families Entering this Country Illegally. (a) The Secretary of Homeland Security (Secretary), shall, to the extent permitted by law and subject to the availability of appropriations, maintain custody of alien families during the pendency of any criminal improper entry or immigration proceedings involving their members.

(b) The Secretary shall not, however, detain an alien family together when there is a concern that detention of an alien child with the child’s alien parent would pose a risk to the child’s welfare.

(c) The Secretary of Defense shall take all legally available measures to provide to the Secretary, upon request, any existing facilities available for the housing and care of alien families, and shall construct such facilities if necessary and consistent with law. The Secretary, to the extent permitted by law, shall be responsible for reimbursement for the use of these facilities.

(d) Heads of executive departments and agencies shall, to the extent consistent with law, make available to the Secretary, for the housing and care of alien families pending court proceedings for improper entry, any facilities that are appropriate for such purposes. The Secretary, to the extent permitted by law, shall be responsible for reimbursement for the use of these facilities.

(e) The Attorney General shall promptly file a request with the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California to modify the Settlement Agreement in Flores v. Sessions, CV 85-4544 (“Flores settlement”), in a manner that would permit the Secretary, under present resource constraints, to detain alien families together throughout the pendency of criminal proceedings for improper entry or any removal or other immigration proceedings.

Sec. 5. General Provisions. (a) Nothing in this order shall be construed to impair or otherwise affect:

(i) the authority granted by law to an executive department or agency, or the head thereof; or

(ii) the functions of the Director of the Office of Management and Budget relating to budgetary, administrative, or legislative proposals.

(b) This order shall be implemented in a manner consistent with applicable law and subject to the availability of appropriations.

(c) This order is not intended to, and does not, create any right or benefit, substantive or procedural, enforceable at law or in equity by any party against the United States, its departments, agencies, or entities, its officers, employees, or agents, or any other person.

The Guardian is today publishing a list of 34,361 people who have lost their lives trying to get into Europe over the past 25 years. Many are just anonymous entries, but our reporters have investigated a few cases to put faces and stories to the victims.

Culture War is Class War disguised. The Wealthy Elite--the "Filthy Rich"--foment Culture War in society to distract and cover their real economic motives. Culture War, Class War explores the resulting cultural divide--how it was instigated and kept alive for fifty years in America by certain elite powers and how and why they choose to benefit while tearing families in two and keeping America paralyzed.